


Sleepless

by orphan_account



Category: Sorted (Website) RPF
Genre: M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-02-08
Updated: 2019-02-08
Packaged: 2019-10-24 05:49:50
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,330
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17698826
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/orphan_account/pseuds/orphan_account
Summary: Barry's chronic anxiety is back and it's keeping him awake again but Mike is eager to help.





	Sleepless

It was 11:53 pm when Mike’s phone rang. He had been strumming on his guitar trying to tease the end of a tune from his mind without success. He picked up his phone and saw Barry’s name appear on the caller ID and then what time it was. Without answering, he knew what the call was about: Barry’s chronic insomnia had been plaguing him again and now he was desperate for sleep. He got up from his couch, grabbed his wallet and car keys as he pressed the phone to his ear.   
“Hey mate, you well?”

Barry’s gravelly voice was low and slow as he mumbled. “I’m sorry to bother you when it’s so late.”

“It’s not a problem at all, Baz. I’m on my way.” Mike responded as he grabbed his guitar and slipped out the door of his flat.

A few minutes later, Barry opened the door and smiled weakly at his friend. Mike took in the purple bags under blood shut eyes and realized how long it had been since they had seen each other since going on Christmas holiday. He wrapped the slender man before him in a hug. “Come on in. Can I get you a drink or something? I just made some tea.”

“Yeah, man. Tea sounds good.” Mike stepped in to the well-decorated flat and closed the door behind him as Barry disappeared into the kitchen. He set his guitar down, leaning it against the couch and followed Barry to the kitchen, noticing the soft scent of lavender as he went. “How long has it been since you got a decent night’s sleep?”

Barry handed him a mug of tea and shrugged, blowing gently on his own mug. “Dunno. A few days anyway. I slept a few solid hours last night.”

“Tried lavender. It’s cold in here too.” Mike sipped the tea. “Decaf tea. That’s actually quite nice. What’s got you wound up, mate?”

Barry stared at him for a long while. Mike nodded in understanding. There was something wrong, but it was a private issue. 

“Well, whatever it is, if I or any other the guys can help, you know we’re always here for you. No judgement. We do worry about you when you get like this.” Mike put his hand on Barry’s bony shoulder. “I’m writing a new song. Maybe that’ll help some.”

Barry nodded and padded towards his bedroom. Mike grabbed his guitar and made his way up the stairs and down the hall. He peered into the dark bedroom lit by the full moon peaking through the curtains at his friend who laid curled in his bed with a heavy duvet over his shoulders. Mike sat on the edge of the bed and smiled softly at Barry. He situated the guitar on his knee and strummed it as softly as he could, humming the tune. He looked up when he had repeated the tune a few times. Barry’s eyes were closed and he was breathing deeply. Mike stood up, convinced his friend was finally sleeping, only to realize blue eyes had opened wide.  
“Ah, mate. Didn’t work?” He sat down again, listing things in his mind that might help put someone to sleep. He knew Barry would have to deal with whatever was bothering him enough to keep him up at night. Barry raised himself up on his elbow and rubbed an eye. 

“For a moment, yeah. I think it did. I tried NyQuil, I tried going for a run. I took all the electronic things out of here. I tried warm milk and a hot shower.” Barry yawned and caught Mike’s eye for only a second before shifting his focus.

Mike wanted to hold his friend. To take away whatever was bothering him. He raised his brow when a thought struck him. “I use to get these nightmares when I was a kid. The same ones over and over. One night, my mum had enough. She didn’t know what else to do. So she got in bed with me and drew stuff on my back. It sounds weird, but it worked.”

Barry’s eyes widened and a smile played on his lips. “Won’t hurt to try, right?”

Mike got up, leaned the guitar against the dresser and Miwent to the other side of the bed. He settled himself a decent distance from his friend and propped himself on his elbow. He gently began to draw simple patterns on Barry’s back, eliciting a snicker from the younger man.

“It tickles a bit. Gives me goosepimples. But I like it.” Barry confessed, snuggling into his pillow.

Mike smiled. “Myself as well.”

He kept doodling softly on Barry’s back, snickering softly when his friend giggled or shivered. After a while, he felt Barry relax, and take deeper breaths.

“Will you stay with me?” Barry asked quietly.

“Sure, mate.” He stared at Barry curiously as he took Mike’s hand and pulled him closer, and held Mike's hand in his hip. The two eventually fell asleep, with Mike close enough to smell Barry’s shampoo.

 

The next morning, Mike woke up in bed alone. He rubbed his face and stretched as he made his way downstairs. The smell of fresh coffee and eggs slowly starting to bring him out of his sleepy haze. Barry was freshly showered and dressed although his hair was only lightly slicked back, allowing for his curls to remain somewhat unruly. Barry looked up from the pan of frying bread when he heard Mike getting a cup of coffee for himself. He looked away sheepishly and a thick silence fell between them. Mike leaned back against the counter, sipping slowly on his drink, waiting for Barry to say something but the silence persisted.

“Well.” Mike said finally, the tension beginning to annoy him. “I quite enjoyed last night.”

Barry dipped his head to the side, trying to avoid seeing any kind of disgust or disapproval on Mike’s face. He didn’t want to address anything. He wanted to chalk it up to sheer exhaustion and wash his hands of anything beyond that. He slipped the bread on to the plates, smeared crushed avocado on them and topped them off with poached eggs. He took the plates to the table and sat down, refusing to make eye contact at all. Mike shook his head and sat down to eat. When they finished Barry took the plates to the sink and rinsed them off. When he turned around, Mike was behind him. Barry gasped and broke eye contact choosing instead to stare at their shoes.

“Listen, mate.” Barry hesitated for a moment, waiting for Mike to put him in his place for using the term, but silence ensued. “I’m sorry about last night. For making you feel awkward. I was tired. I wasn’t thinking straight. I didn’t mean anything by it.”

“You expect me to buy that?” Barry looked up quizzically at his friend feeling hopeless. “I’ve seen the way you look at me and other guys for a while. I was hoping you’d prove me right and make a move. You’ve always been confident about other things.”

Barry tried to string a coherent sentence but ended up sputtering bits of random words as usually when in the midst of a panic attack. He frowned in frustration, trying to organize his head. Mike put his hand on Barry’s cheek, coaxing him to lift his head up then kissed him softly. Barry froze in confusion, but allowed Mike to lead the kiss.

“What’s just happened?” Barry asked when Mike pulled away from him.

“Ball’s in your court, mate.” Mike smirked as he grabbed his guitar. 

“So dinner would be good?” Barry followed him to the front door, dizzy with emotion.

“Absolutely. I’ll see you at the studio later.” Mike slipped out the door and skipped down the stairs and made his way to his car. Barry grinned as he watched the white Renault Koleos pull away from the curb and go down the street.

**Author's Note:**

> I hope this is okay. I haven't written anything like this before.


End file.
